Foundations of Materials Science and Engineering

In Chapter–1 of this timely book, radiation damage in vanadium, niobium, molybdenum and tungsten is discussed at the atomic level; treating – for instance - third-stage recovery in terms of self-interstitials being mobile traps for - predominantly - vacancies. Higher recovery stages are treated by using various techniques, such as: electrical resistivity, electron microscopy, positron annihilation spectroscopy and computer simulation - thus revealing vacancy-cluster break-up in stage-V and interstitial cluster annealing in stage-VI.

The elements: Si, N, O, C and H, have strong chemical affinities for one another. Under the correct conditions, Si-N bonding will occur in almost any Si-N-(O/C/H), and many related, reaction systems; although Si-O and Si-C are formidable competitors to Si-N. The most favored Si-N compound is stoichiometric Si3N4. It comes in three common varieties. How they interrelate, how one finds them and (above all ) how one makes them - and how sometimes they just happen to form - are the subjects of this book, with due attention being paid to closely related matters.

Diamond, as well as being a precious gem, is a versatile material par excellence. No other material comes anywhere near to matching its properties, which are both extreme, and also expressed in rare combinations. However, natural diamonds, and those synthesised under high sandpressure temperatures, are too expensive or small for many technological applications. These limitations can be overcome by using large-area diamond coatings; chemically bonded to inexpensive non-diamond surfaces. The consequent economic advantages provide the driving force for much diamond-related research and technology.

This book is divided into two parts: the first part describes diffusion processes, and the second part describes radiation damage to - and cold-working of - zirconium and some of its important alloys.

Manufacturing industry is becoming ever more time-conscious with regard to the global economy, and the need for rapid prototyping and small production batches is increasing. These trends have placed a premium on the use of new and advanced technologies for quickly turning raw materials into usable goods; with no time being required for tooling. The need for advanced processing technologies is particularly evident when machining advanced materials, such as ceramics, composites and thermo-sensitive materials that have wide application but are considered to be "difficult-to-machine" using conventional machining technologies such as turning and milling. Abrasive waterjet (AWJ) machining has been found to be one of the advanced technologies that meet these processing requirements; due to its distinct advantages over other machining technologies.

This publication is based upon lectures given during a well-received course on physical metallurgy and originally intended for students specializing in fields related to metallic materials. But, as the author points out, metallic materials are the most widely investigated group of materials and their study therefore gives a good basis for understanding how other materials can be made to reveal interrelationships between their structures and properties; especially with regard to those properties associated with strain. Similar types of rule can then be applied to other materials, in spite of their apparent differences.

Nucleation is a central topic in Materials Science because it initiates most phase transformations. When a new phase appears within an existing phase, seeds must form before growth can occur within the given volume. The study of nucleation treats the very early stages, which involve only a limited number of atoms or molecules. It is a branch of fundamental research which has far-reaching implications for processes where nucleation is of paramount relevance to phase and microstructure selection. The development of any new material or processing route always leads to renewed interest in the topic.

In the 1990s, there was a considerable development in molecular chemistry through super- and supra-supermolecular stages. These featured large molecular arrays, from interlocked organic macromolecules, nanotubes, dendrimers, polyphenylenes, and many others - especially self-assembling molecules (SAM) - in repeating units in the 5 – 100 nm range. Simultaneously, materials science, and especially electronics, is still going down from microns to nanometers through utilisation of ever-shorter wavelengths in beam lithographies on substrates, especially silicon ones. In addition, unconventional fabrication methods for patterning nanostructures (again for electronics and optoelectronics) are also emerging, at the same time overlapping with other fields where mesoscopic order is responsible for function, such as bio-ordering (shells, plate ordering in animal shells and wings, DNA-derived assemblies, and so on).

Materials with nanometer size particles exhibit unique chemical and physical properties. In particular, nanocomposite materials, composed of nanometric metal and metal oxide particles embedded in vitreous matrices, present a variety of interesting magnetic, electric and catalytic properties, that are strongly size-dependent. Among the different preparation methods which can be used to obtain this kind of materials, the sol-gel process is particularly interesting because it is affected by several parameters which allow a versatile control of the structural, textural and chemical properties of the final products. The present volume focusses on the preparation of metal-silica and metal oxide-silica (Me=Ni, Fe, Zn) nanocomposites by the sol-gel method and the characterization of their structural and magnetic properties.

Composite materials are traditionally designed for the mechanical properties, due to their structural applications. However, composite materials are increasingly used in non-structural applications, such as electronic packaging and thermal management. Moreover, structural composite materials that are multifunctional are increasingly needed, due to the demand of smart structures and the importance of weight saving. As a consequence, structural materials that can provide electronic functions are needed. Thus, electronic functions are desirable for both non-structural and structural composite materials.